Venezuela has announced an investigation into claims that migrants sent to an El Salvador prison from the US have suffered human rights violations.
More than 250 Venezuelans were repatriated to the nearby Caracas on Friday. They had been held in El Salvador since March after their deportation from the United States.
Venezuelan attorney -general Tarek William Saab said that there had been “systemic torture” in prison, including sexual abuse, daily strokes and rotty prison.
El Salvador still has to respond to the claims.
During a press conference, Saab presented testimonies and images that seem to show prisoners with injuries, including bruising and missing teeth. These claims are not independently verified by the BBC.
Venezuela will investigate the president of El Salvador Nayib Bukele, Minister of Justice Gustavo Villatoro and head of prisons Osiris Luna Meza.
The Attorney General insisted on the International Criminal Court (ICC), the UN human rights council and relevant authorities in America to “do the same”.
Venezuela is currently confronted with an investigation by the ICC in The Hague for accusations comparable to those of the country in El Salvador, including torture of prisoners and denying access to legal representation.
The Venezuelans were deported in March among the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, which gives an American president power to hold and deport residents or citizens of “enemy” nations without usual processes. They were accused of belonging to a gang, something that many family members and lawyers deny.
They were held in the infamous terrorism restriction center, known as Cecot, which was originally built to keep accused gang members.
The group had no access to lawyers or their family members and was last seen in photos issued by the government of Bukele who suggested that they arrived in handcuffs with their heads, which led to international protest.
They were released in mid-July by El Salvador in exchange for American subjects held in Venezuela, in which a senior official of Trump administration told reporters that they expanded their “deep, deep gratitude” to Bukele for facilitating the deal.
The US imposed heavy sanctions on Venezuela and in May the Supreme Court ruled that the temporary protected status for Venezuelan nationals could be withdrawn, which affects around 350,000 people.
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